Weekly Randoms 10/2

jenotontx

What's going on this week? 

Dumbgurl04

My heart is complete and 100% broken waking up to the news in Vegas.  I hope any moms who live out there are ok.  What a senseless and cowardice thing to happen.  

ekendall09

mine too @Dumbgurl04 it's heartbreaking

viggie17

I'm also so sad over the Las Vegas shooting... I was having a hard time keeping it together on the ride in to work today. I just cannot understand why this is happening to defenseless people and feel angry that this is so out of control. : ( 

sapphires-and-diamonds

I have not turned on the tv or looked at my phone until now. I had to go look up what you ladies were talking about. I am sick, and crying. I cannot believe what I just read. So terrible.

ngolimento

I'm really upset about the shooting in Vegas too.  I don't want to start a political fight on this board, but the number of weapons of mass death and war circulating in our general population makes me worry so much for my child.  There is only one reason to own a weapon that spews hundreds of rounds per minute, and that is killing as many people as you can.  No citizen has a sane reason to have access to that.  None.

okayrunner

I agree, @ngolimento. It's so unnecessary. This is devastating. 

kmalls

At what point do the "rights" of gun owners become less important than my right to live without fear of a mass shooting? Or my right to live, period? Because right now their right to own semiautomatic weapons very clearly outweigh everyone's right to life. It's absolutely disgusting. 

ETA: I know @ngolimento doesn't want to start a political debate here, but I'll do it. If anyone can tell me a legitimate reason for semi automatic weapons to be available to the general public in addition to the scaling back of background checks that the NRA is pushing for, I'd love to hear it. 

jenotontx

@ngolimento Absolutely 100% agree and I'm sure our founding fathers had no idea when writing the 2nd amendment that weapons would advance to the level they are today. I'm devastated by what is happening in our country when it comes to gun violence. I have started avoiding large events or situations with lots of people in small spaces for that very reason.    

ngolimento

JJMNO1616 said:

@ngolimento Absolutely 100% agree and I'm sure our founding fathers had no idea when writing the 2nd amendment that weapons would advance to the level they are today. I'm devastated by what is happening in our country when it comes to gun violence. I have started avoiding large events or situations with lots of people in small spaces for that very reason.    

The counter-argument of "we need to be able to defend ourselves from the govt" is the most insane line of reasoning I have ever heard.  Whenever I hear it, it kind of puts me into a mental blue screen because of the sheer stupidity.  I mean, you are going to defend yourself against the largest military power in the world, that has remote drone bombs and nuclear weapons, with your crazy-cakes bunker and guns?  Seriously?!.  

And the argument where school personnel should carry weapons is equally boggling.  Are people seriously ok with the idea of schools becoming fire-fight zones?  Like, that is how people in Sudan and Afghanistan live.  That's the lifestyle you look up to?  That's your vision of America?  

Dumbgurl04

completely agree @ngolimento there is no reason a civilian needs that type of gun.  From what I read the room the shooter was or even his house (can't remember which) had tons of guns in them.  I don't see why there can't be better background checks to see why a single person needs to buy semi-automatic weapons and tons of ammunition, clearly they aren't going hunting.  Hell they monitor how much cold medicine you can buy why can't the same be done with guns and ammunition?

sunshinedays-2

Venturing out of the PGAL thread for a first time in a while...

I agree with what's been said above. I'm so sad and so sick of these shootings happening with such frequency. It is out of control and needs to be addressed.

lindsye

I guess Trump now needs to start closely monitoring the social media accounts of all white, late middle aged men... oh, exactly like him.

And now I did get political.

Link for anyone unfamiliar with the reference: www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2017/09/30/homeland-security-immigrants-facebook-trump/718308001/

kmalls

@lindsye my first reaction was to wonder how Trump will spin this one, with the shooter being white and male. He doesn't have his stereotypical "terrorist" to blame so there can be no knee-jerk response calling for even more travel bans, nor can he rage against anyone with a different skin color than him.

Listening to his statement from the White House a little earlier, it seems all he wants to do is "pray." I hope with everything I've got that prayers are the least of his response, but I have no expectation that any meaningful changes will be made. 

sparklingdiamond

Ok well my random isn't political, but we bought a new car this weekend and I love it!  I took my old one in for a repair on Fri that ended up costing $1500 and it needed another $500 one.  They said it may be a permanent fix, but may not fix it and we would need a whole new transmission at $4700.  The car was a 2012 with less than 100k miles.  It should not have all of the problems it's had and we already spent $3500 on repairs this year.  I am done with it.  Such a relief to have it gone.

ngolimento

Omg what a circus today is.  We had unkown fumes leaking into our workplace today, and nobody knew what the cause was.  Since I am uninterested in hanging around and waiting a few hours to see if they are bad or not, I left.  Now I am dealing with a the Warren that is my HR Dept to see if I can avoid being penalized for leaving.

Dumbgurl04

that is crazy @ngolimento you shouldn't be penalized for something like that.  

ekendall09

I had my half marathon yesterday and can barely walk today...totally my fault for under training but the ouch is real.  I barely slept last night because turning over was painful.

whatabout2ndbreakfast

@ngolimento penalized? seriously? i'm not sticking around with mystery fumes!

sunshinedays-2

@sparklingdiamond what kind of car did you end up getting? We are starting to look around because we'll need to get one before the baby comes (our current car is 2 door and tiny).

julzy

Thank you @ngolimento. I couldn't agree more. I'm sad and also so friggin angry today at the news out of Vegas. I was literally at that hotel a week ago with my 2 year old. I don't want to read one more "thoughts and prayers" statement. It's time for action. It's been time for years. We need common sense gun control on the federal level and we need it now. Our love affair with guns is stronger than our love affair with our fellow people. It's sickening. 

g_amoss

It’s mind numbing to think how many shootings/bombings/etc have happened in the last few years. Most of us forget at least a few of them. It does weigh on my mind what the world is coming to, and if this will be ‘normal’ for our kids or if things get better through action of some sort. It’s scary shit.

sparklingdiamond

@sunshinedays-2 It is a Subaru Forrester.  I was leaning towards a Toyota Highlander or Rav4, but saw the Subarus when we went to the fair on Friday.  I was liking the Crosstrek, but it's a bit too small to try to fit two car seats in.  The Forrester was the next size up.

sunshinedays-2

@sparklingdiamond my friend who is TTC just bought a Forrester and it is definitely something I've had my eye on! My friend absolutely loves it.

keeksie84

@ekendall09, way to go!  What an accomplishment!  I ran a half with my friend who was pregnant a few years ago. I was out of shape and thankful she had to stop to use the restroom every few miles.

I too am feeling heartbroken for Vegas and the state of our nation. I'll keep it at that to remain apolitical. 

mispanda

@ngolimento I would of done the same exact thing.  If the fumes are unknown and they want to penalize you for leaving because staying would have possibly put their worker in danger along with an unborn child then shame on them.  

@ekendall09 congrats on your run!  That's very impressive!  The most I do is take a 2/3 mile leisure stroller walk daily.  

ekendall09

@keeksie84 you're a good friend!! I had to pee the entire run but just "held" it, as in I held as much as I could but inevitably some leaks out every time I run regardless.  I always have extra clothes following all my races, I learned  that lesson the hard way haha

jenotontx

ngolimento said:

Omg what a circus today is.  We had unkown fumes leaking into our workplace today, and nobody knew what the cause was.  Since I am uninterested in hanging around and waiting a few hours to see if they are bad or not, I left.  Now I am dealing with a the Warren that is my HR Dept to see if I can avoid being penalized for leaving.

Wut? No, HR department, just no. They are very negligent for not immediately evacuating everyone. Are they for real life?!  

ladythrice

@julzy, that's terrifying. I hate that I feel no place is safe to take my kids.

Politics incoming... I get wanting to own guns for recreation or 'protection' but add me to the camp of semi-automatic weapons, let alone fully automatic weapons (there's some thought out there the shooter was using a fully auto), do. not. belong. with. civilians. I just can't be convinced.

We went to the park last weekend and there were two boys (7-8) running around playing commando/cops/swat/whatever shooting toy guns at one another. I have NEVER been 'that' parent/person who feels that playing these kinds of games is 'bad.' ...Until one of those kids turned their fake gun on my child and started pretending shooting my 2 year old. Crazy momma bear came out and I yelled at that kid to never point a gun at my kids again, in front of his parents. The parents didn't even care... about the shooting at other kids nor about my yelling at their kid. Its raised an interesting parenting conundrum for us. I don't know how I will handle my son asking for toy guns as a gift. I'm not comfortable with it at all, and I never thought I would be THIS uncomfortable with it.

The one thing I do feel comfortable with is the idea that the kids that grow up and do shit like mass shootings--they certainly WEREN'T the kids who's parents told them NOT to shoot people. Nor were they the kids who grew up in homes without weapons. Just saying.

okayrunner

Congratulations, @ekendall09! I've been wondering how it went. That's a huge accomplishment, especially with a lack of training! 

keeksie84

@ekendall09 and @okayrunner, are you both finding time to run?  I'm having the hardest time getting motivated to get off the couch.

ekendall09

@keeksie84 I didn't find enough time to be honest, and half assed it but running once a week at best.  I'm lucky to get in 3-4 workouts a week right now because most the time I'm just tired and unmotivated. I'm planning to try and find a workout program or activity I genuinely enjoy to incorporate over the next few months. @okayrunner is a pregnant running saint in my eyes!!

ngolimento

JJMNO1616 said:

ngolimento said:

Omg what a circus today is.  We had unkown fumes leaking into our workplace today, and nobody knew what the cause was.  Since I am uninterested in hanging around and waiting a few hours to see if they are bad or not, I left.  Now I am dealing with a the Warren that is my HR Dept to see if I can avoid being penalized for leaving.

Wut? No, HR department, just no. They are very negligent for not immediately evacuating everyone. Are they for real life?!  

Sadly, it happens about once a year.  Either someone parks a semi and idles it under our air intake, or someone works with paint solvent under the vent, or something.  It's really obnoxious.

petethecat

kmalls said:

At what point do the "rights" of gun owners become less important than my right to live without fear of a mass shooting? Or my right to live, period? Because right now their right to own semiautomatic weapons very clearly outweigh everyone's right to life. It's absolutely disgusting. 

ETA: I know @ngolimento doesn't want to start a political debate here, but I'll do it. If anyone can tell me a legitimate reason for semi automatic weapons to be available to the general public in addition to the scaling back of background checks that the NRA is pushing for, I'd love to hear it. 

Both my husband and I own semi automatic hand guns. I own a 9mm pistol and his is a 45. I want to point out that a semi automatic gun is just a gun that doesn't have to be reloaded and cocked (like a shot gun) every time that you want to shoot a single bullet. For example, my gun (which I own legally for personal and home defense) holds 18 rounds and will fire only one bullet with each pull of the trigger. So, to shoot 5 bullets, I would have to pull the trigger repeatedly 5 times. That is all semi automatic means.

The legitimate reason that I own a semi automatic handgun (and do, in fact, feel that I should have the right to do so) is that, if an intruder broke into my home to harm me or my child, I know that I would probably be so upset and scared that I would need those 18 bullets and 18 trigger pulls (and thus, 18 chances to defend myself) to guarantee that I would even hit the guy once, nevermind if there are two intruders or even three. If I only had the option of a non automatic gun, like a single barreled shot gun that I had to load and cock every time I needed to shoot just one bullet, that would make it very difficult for me to defend myself or my child if I had to, which is very scary to me.

Though you can purchase semi automatic assault type rifles like AR-15s or AK-47s legally, they are still only able to dispense one bullet per trigger pull. You can convert semi automatic assault type rifles to fully automatic, but the parts needed to do so are currently illegal. Moreover, doing the conversion yourself on those types of guns would yield a weapon that is unreliable and would overheat quickly.

Weapons that are able to rapid fire are fully automatic and will expel bullets repeatedly with a single trigger pull, until all the bullets run out. Typically, these types of weapons use belt feeders and are otherwise known as machine guns. If you listen to the audio of the vegas shooting, it is clear that the shooter is using fully automatic weapons. There is no possible way to fire that many shots, that rapidly, without stopping, with a semi automatic gun. Fully automatic weapons are already illegal in this country. The only way to obtain one is with a special FBI/ATF issued license, which is very hard to get. 

The point of my post here is not to start a debate or anything, I just want to share some facts because it appears that there is some misunderstanding about what constitutes semi automatic, fully automatic, and non automatic weapons, as well as their capabilities and individual legalities in this country. 

Unrelated to what I've shared, I do also want to note that I do not share the mindset that I may need to (or that I could ever) defend myself from the government. I also do not support the scaling back of any sort of background checks required to buy any type of gun in this country. 

Most importantly, I want to state that the vegas shooting was a terrible, horrific act and (though it does not in any way right the grief of the families touched by this senseless act of violence) I'm glad that the shooter can't hurt anyone else now. 

Edit for typo

sparklingdiamond

I know this has probably been asked before, but I can't find where.  Those of you that used/use dopplers, what brand did you get?  Does it show the bpm on it or do you have to count it yourself?

jenotontx

@kbamomma33 Thank you for your explanation. I didn't realize the difference between semi automatic guns and a fully automatic. I guess the word "semi" should have been a clue. Also on a completely different note, how did you get that crying/laugh emoji to show up?! 

petethecat

@JJMNO1616 : joy : except without the space. There are loads of others too, like : cookie :

kmalls

@kbamomma33 thank you for your clarification, and for sharing your opinion. Thoughtful discussion can go a long way in understanding both sides. 

I must admit, and I'm truly not attacking you, that it doesn't make me comfortable to hear that you believe you need a semi-automatic weapon to have even a chance of hitting an intruder. I'm positive you're not the only one who feels that way, and to know there are people (collective people, not you in particular) who have possession of these weapons and can potentially fire them at will in response to any perceived threat -- I mean, that's scary. What happens if someone on the street sees a crime and decides to shoot 18 times (because they can!) missing on all but one of those shots? 

I guess there is literally no reason I personally will ever be ok with civilians owning guns. I know there is a gun culture and plenty of responsible owners, but to me the risks FAR outweigh any benefit. 

kmalls

sparklingdiamond said:

I know this has probably been asked before, but I can't find where.  Those of you that used/use dopplers, what brand did you get?  Does it show the bpm on it or do you have to count it yourself?

@sparklingdiamond I have a SonolineB, which is what they use at my OBs office. It shows BPM as long as you get a strong read. 

sunshinedays-2

kmalls said:

sparklingdiamond said:

I know this has probably been asked before, but I can't find where.  Those of you that used/use dopplers, what brand did you get?  Does it show the bpm on it or do you have to count it yourself?

@sparklingdiamond I have a SonolineB, which is what they use at my OBs office. It shows BPM as long as you get a strong read. 

I have a SonolineB as well. Just now starting to be able to find HB on demand at 13+3

lindsye

@sparklingdiamond I also have a SonolineB. I got it 6 years ago when I was pregnant with my first child and it's still going strong. The BPM is not always super accurate (at least on mine) but you can hear/see when it is "skipping" beats and it gives you a pretty good estimate. I use it very regularly before I can feel movement and think it's a good investment.